BALI 100 KM (Book 1) ✔

Chapter 21

A stray thought entered his mind at that moment. It was time for Nand to visit the doctor for a follow-up, and after that, he could go to inspector Sarathi at the police station on the pretext of inquiring into Nand's missing complaint. This plan eased his tension a bit. 

The next day, they arrived at the hospital a tad before time and had to wait for the doctor to come. The doctor was satisfied with Nand's progress but advised some tests to confirm that. Bandu thanked the doctor and proceeded towards the laboratory for the tests. There he showed the nurse in attendance the doctor's slip.

"Aren't you the one who saved the life of a patient from the fire in the ICU?" she asked Bandu.

"Yes, that's me," Bandu confirmed.

"I remember now, weren't you admitted here a few months back too? You happened to be in an accident or something," the nurse said triumphantly and was happy when proved right by Bandu.

"And you, little one, how are you now?" she addressed Nand.

Nand, as usual, with his captivating smile, gestured his fineness to the nurse.

"Ok then, lie down on the bed here and let us collect some blood samples." She indicated towards the bed.

At this statement, Nand's hand clutched Bandu's in a tight grip. The fear of needles propped up in his eyes. Bandu's assurances began to flow away with the tears that were streaming out in earnest. Bandu carried him to the bed and held him down while trying to calm him. Meanwhile, the nurse held down his legs, and the laboratory technician carried out his job.

"It's over, Nand, it's over, don't cry now," Bandu said. He pacified Nand and wiped away his tears,  and made him sit upright, and hugged him. Bandu's emotions were on the verge of spilling out, seeing the boy cry and not hear it. He felt so helpless.

"Here's a candy for you, Nand." the nurse said, offering him a bar of chocolate. Distracted by the chocolate, Nand stopped crying and accepted the chocolate; Bandu then helped him get down the bed.

"Does it still hurt you, Nand?" the nurse asked as she stuck a tape in the place where they injected it. Nand gestures that it hurt him a little now. Satisfied, the nurse patted him on his back and smiled.

"Like father, like son," she stated, a statement, which made Bandu look at the nurse with confusion and surprise.

"Come and collect the report today evening or tomorrow, and show it to the doctor," she said.

"But, I was never afraid of injections." Bandu insisted on clarifying.

"Oh, no, I am not talking about injections, but about the birthmark you both have on the soles of your left feet, you know," she said, clearing the misunderstanding and leaving Bandu stunned to silence.

The statement caught him off guard. He couldn't breathe and apprehend what he heard. He had grown stiff and moved in a trance out of the building. He made his way straight to the bench in the garden. He looked at the boy as though he saw him for the first time and felt blanked out. His eyes filled up, blurring his vision. Breathing heavily, he was trying to control it when he felt a pinch on his hands. The boy was engaged in loosening Bandu's tight grip on his hands. Blinking away the momentary stupor, he released his hold at once and then turned in another direction to hide his emotions.

His heart settled enough for him to try and understand the situation. He wanted to see the mark for himself. He picked up Nand's left foot and saw the impossible, the dark spot, the same tainted mark. He didn't even want to touch it and let the feet down while Nand watched him in confusion.

How can it be? Who is this boy? Questions now hovered around. It was like seeing the younger version of himself. He gathered the boy in his arms and hugged him tightly. If he found who the boy was, he could find himself.

Now it became more necessary to find Nand's parents, and with that determination, he strode towards the police station. At the station, he had to wait, as the inspector had not yet arrived. They both carried themselves to a bench in the room. Nand, as usual, was watching with curious eyes the jail cells, the people behind them, the constables, their uniforms, the guns, the handcuffs, and many other details.

On the other hand, Bandu regretted bringing a child to such a place. But since he had come there for something important, he sat on the regret. He was contemplating what he wanted to tell inspector Sarathi. Firstly, he had to show the note he received. Then he would ask that crucial question that had bothered him since his conversation with Das. The police would surely be able to tell him, as it was a part of their investigation. But will inspector Sarathi suspect his intentions? It was nagging him nevertheless. And if he doubted, then Bandu will stand to lose Nand. No, that would spoil his plan; it should not be happening, Bandu thought. If he lost Nand, he would not find his answers to both his questions. Soon his head started to ache from too much thinking.

Wanting to distract his thoughts, he looked towards Nand beside him. Shocked at the empty seat beside him, he stood up instantly, his anxious eyes searching the room for the boy. He sighed with relief as he spotted the little fellow at the other end of the room standing and looking intently at the photographs pinned on the board above him on the wall. He walked across towards him to come and stand behind him. As he placed a hand on his shoulder, the boy turned and raised his hands towards Bandu.

"You want me to pick you up?" Bandu asked and received a nod. 

Bandu bent over and picked him up, wondering whether he was tired of all the activities, but the boy had other plans altogether and leaned towards the board to look at the photographs. Bandu glanced at the board. It held pictures of wanted criminals. As he scanned through the faces, his eyes got fixated on two familiar faces, but then a hand on one of the images blocked his view. Nand had placed his hand on the photo.

"What? Do you know this man in the picture?" looking at the smiling, excited face of the child, Bandu asked, and he got a nod from him. But he feared the answer to the next question.